Having been around for over ten years now, Welsh pop-punk band Neck Deep is not an unfamiliar name in the scene. Almost four years since their previous release, the band – consisting of lead singer Ben Barlow, bassist Seb Barlow, guitarists Matt West and Sam Bowden, and drummer Matt Powles – released their self-titled album on the 19th of January 2024. This new album is completely self-written and produced, and described by Ben Barlow as “a return to their roots” of sorts. For this reason, the album does not include any acoustic songs, unlike their previous albums.
The album opens with ‘Dumbstruck Dumbf**k’, in which the singer speaks about wanting, or maybe even needing, to become a better person for his girlfriend. He seems to feel the need to change in order to not be left behind and/or replaced by someone else. The song feels like a conversation between the singer and his girlfriend, where they’re discussing their traumas and the impact they’ve had on this relationship. This self-critical approach is a recurring theme on this album, and especially in the first few songs, as both ‘Sort Yourself Out’ and ‘This Is All My Fault’ touch upon this. In the second track, Barlow also acknowledges that while he needs to “sort himself out”, it is important that his significant other trusts him and believes that he can do the work necessary to improve as a person. Out of the three, ‘This Is All My Fault’ is the most pessimistic – the singer feels he is not good enough for the other person, like he’s worthless and therefore understands why someone would want to leave him. This triad of emo songs share a very 2000s pop punk approach both in their lyricism as well as their instrumentals – very catchy drums and guitar riffs make for tracks that will get you out of your seat.
The fourth song on the album, ‘We Need More Bricks’, breaks from the relationship content to make a political statement – and this is exactly what punk stands for. It is a shout for people to stand up against the regime with a hard hitting chorus that reminds one of the power they hold to either build or destroy. Barlow himself said about the song that it “touches on everything from the monarchy, immigration, protest laws and international wars”, which is extremely important in a time where right wing politicians seem to be gaining the upper hand. With this powerful anthem, Neck Deep is calling on ‘punks’ to make a difference in this world.
After this serious track, the band takes their time to add something fun on the album as well. ‘Heartbreak of the Century’ was a single released on Valentine’s Day, and essentially imagines what it is like to win an award for, well, the best (or biggest) heartbreak. The instrumental introduction to the song gets one moving immediately, and it’s easy to envision how well this will be received during the album tour later this year.
‘Go Outside!’ is reminiscent of the earlier ‘This Is All My Fault’, where the singer is clearly struggling mentally, but afraid to give in to it, afraid to open up and ask for help. It is a call to speak to someone you trust, while also acknowledging the fear of being rejected or judged. Instrumentally, it is interesting that this is the song where the band has decided to add a tambourine intro and quite joyful-sounding synths in the background, providing a contrast between the darker lyrics and happier music.
The seventh track, and second single, ‘Take Me with You’ touched on a typical pop-punk trope of wanting to escape home in the form of extraterrestrial entities taking you with them to a better place (planet). The song makes references to both ET – “Don’t need no bike to get him home” – and the X Files, while also falling in line with the concept of blink-182’s ‘Aliens Exist’. This is supposed to mostly be another fun song, yet has a message that a lot of people can relate to.
‘They May Not Mean To (But They Do)’ is the eighth track on this album and quotes a line from Phillip Larkin’s poem ‘This Be the Verse’: “They fuck you up, your mom and dad. They may not mean to, but they do” and turns this into a full song. It seems to describe an abusive household and realizing how growing up in that environment shaped you into who you are today. Without meaning to, the child has turned out exactly like their father – “now they’re fucked up, just like you”. In between the bridge and final chorus, the audience hears the main guitar solo of this album – and a great one at that.
The second to last song is another single, ‘It Won’t Be Like This Forever’, which falls in line with the previous tracks in its thematic approach. After the introduction, the instrumentals kick in and Barlow sings about hoping and eventually believing that despite everything, together they can make it. When one is unable to get through life alone, there is another person who can cheer them up and stop them from getting lost inside their own head.
Finally, the album closes with maybe the best track, ‘Moody Weirdo’. Unexpected from its somewhat silly title, this one is almost poetic in the way the verses are sang – short lines portray and capture how the character in this song is feeling, having faced many hardships throughout life. Yet, in the chorus, it is stated how important it is that even though traumas have been inflicted upon you, to face forward and stay true to yourself. A small pause stops the track before it dives into the album’s final chorus – there’s no better way to end this album than on a positive note of change.
In its entirety, Neck Deep is a typical pop-punk album reminiscent of 2000s music made by bands such as blink-182, a mix of catchy riffs and hard hitting lyrics about the current state of the world and the impact of this on one’s state of mind. One can’t avoid hitting rough patches, but one can learn from them and become a better person, a person that stands up for themselves and what they believe in.
Written by: Mandy Huibregtsen
Edited by: Molly Day
